Outside the door, a few halls down, two pegasi are waiting patiently in the lobby for the word on their family. Rainbow Dad and Derpy Hooves were sitting in their chairs, cold jackets on their bodies, shaking, blowing cold air out their mouths.
"Dad, why is so cold in here?" Derpy asked, pushing closer to dad for warmth.
"Ah, I don't know." He wrapped his hoof around her. "Don't worry though; when that doctor comes, we'll ask him all about it." She nodded. Dad shivered.
He looked down the hall, and he spotted the doctor that he talked too earlier. He sighed with relief and anxiety. They had been waiting for his arrival for about four hours.
The doctor stopped in front of them, a small smile on his face.
"Sorry for the wait, you two. It's been a bit hectic lately, with this whole heater situation, and taking care of both your fillies and all."
"It's no trouble, were just glad you're here." Dad said. "What's wrong with the heater?"
"Oh, darned blizzard knocked it out. It's been broken all day now!"
Dad turned to Derpy. "No wonder it's so cold in here." Derpy nodded in response, rubbing her hooves together.
"Yeah. We've been busting our flanks trying to fix it." He said with a slight groan.
Dad nodded. He had a lot of questions that needed answering. "Doc...how are my daughters doing?"
He sighed. "Well, the last time I checked in on Rainbow Dash, she was awake, and very concerned. She looks to be fine, all she needs is a little more rest." He answered.
Dad sighed. "That's good to hear. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to her." He paused. "What about Fluttershy? Is she okay?" He asked.
The doc sat down with them. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about." He paused, shivering from the cold. "At this moment in time, Fluttershy is alive and in a stable condition. All she's doing is sleeping right now." Both Dad and Derpy sighed in relief from this. "However, I will inform you that it can all change." He sighed. "When Rainbow Dash brought her in yesterday, Fluttershy's condition was...awful. I'm saying that in the nicest way possible."
"W-What do you mean?" Derpy asked, frightened by his words.
He gave them both a glance before he said his next words. "Fluttershy was dead."
Derpy gasped, and Dad almost fell backwards. "Dead?! She was dead?!" Dad was in disbelief. "H...How...how is she alive then?"
"Were still asking that same question. We brought both of them in, and we saw that Rainbow Dash was still alive, but Fluttershy, her heart wasn't beating, and she wasn't breathing. We went through our normal procedures to see if we could get her heart moving again, and for a good 30 minutes, nothing worked. Usually, we stop after about five or ten minutes, because that's usually how long it could take to reboot the heart. I had to keep everyone else hopeful, but after those 30 minutes, we almost gave up...but all of a sudden, the machine started beeping. I checked her heart and it was beating. I couldn't believe it. I thought that it was a flaw in the machine, but her heart proved different." He paused. "It was a miracle. That's all I thought."
Derpy, who had grasped Dad's jacket, sucked in a breath. She almost forgot to breath during the second half of that story. Dad looked at the doctor with silent compassion. He had never seen anyone go the extra length to keep his children safe, mostly because no-one usually needed too, but this doctor did, and he deserved a thousand thanks, then some.
"What made you keep going?" Dad asked.
"Pardon?"
"Well, you said that you usually give the patient about ten minutes..."
"I was being modest. I usually give the patients five to ten minutes, other doctors go a lot less." He shook his head.
"I see...but what made you keep going?"
The doctor sighed. "Well, there were two reasons. You can give the first one to your daughter, Rainbow Dash. She was the main reason."
"What? What did she do?" He asked.
"I forgot that didn't tell you the story. Rainbow Dash came bursting in the door, carrying that yellow Pegasus in her hooves. She looked more exhausted and drained than any pony I've ever seen. I couldn't even imagine how long she trudged through the snow. She looked almost as pale as Fluttershy. I was right at the front desk, and I saw everything." He paused. "Here's why I went the extra mile to save her. When I eventually realized how far she had gone to save her, something just told me, "You have to keep that Pegasus alive, no matter how hard it may be." And so, I tried everything in my power to save her, and thankfully, I did."
Derpy crawled over Dad quickly, and she hugged the doctor tightly. He was not expecting her to suddenly spring up like that. She had been completely silent except for one question.
"Th-Thank you!" Was all she could make out. He just realized that she had been crying. Dad smiled, patting her on the back. When she finally let go, she didn't look directly at him, embarrassed for her crying. She turned back to Dad and leaned against him, sighing, closing her eyes.
"Derpy took the words right out of my mouth. We couldn't be more appreciative of what you've done. You...you saved Fluttershy..."
"No, Rainbow Dash saved Fluttershy. I merely warmed her up."
"Wait...how were you able to warm her up without a heater?"
He smiled. "Let's just say I had a little help from a kitchen oven."
Dad had to wonder what that meant, but before he could ask another question, the doctor stood up. "Well, I have to get back to work. I've got another patient other than Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy to take care of. I'll see you two tomorrow." He started to walk away.
"Wait..." Derpy said quietly.
Doctor Hooves was just able to hear her. "Yes Derpy?"
"When will we be able to see them?" She asked.
He thought about that for a moment. "Well, since Rainbow Dash is awake, you can see her tomorrow during visiting hours. Fluttershy however, will have to wait. She needs as much sleep as she can get." He said, walking away.
"Tomorrow? Aw, I wanted to see her today!" Derpy cried.
"I know Derpy, I did too." He said, pulling her closer. Derpy nuzzled herself back into him, sighing.
"I hope they'll be alright." Derpy said, a little frightened.
"They'll be fine Derpy, don't worry." He reassured her. He looked down the hall, not exactly trusting his own answer. He silently prayed to Celestia to keep his daughters safe. He looked down at Derpy, who had fallen asleep. He smiled, thinking, At least one of them is safe. He kissed her on the head, then he leaned up against the chair. Relaxing, he finally fell asleep.